Abstract

This report is dedicated to the network infrastructure design for Info Tech Corporation.

Info Tech
Network Infrastructure Report
Infrastructure Report Info Tech | Sr. Network Engineer

Table of Contents
Introduction.................................................................................................................................................2
1. Standards and Protocols..........................................................................................................................2
1.1 The OSI and TCP/IP Conceptual Models............................................................................................2
1.2 Types of Networks.............................................................................................................................5
1.3 Network Architectures & Technologies.............................................................................................7
1.4 Importance of Respecting Standards and Protocol............................................................................8
2. Devices and Operations...........................................................................................................................9
2.1 Wired Network Systems....................................................................................................................9
2.2 Wireless Network Systems..............................................................................................................10
3. Network Servers....................................................................................................................................11
3.1 Content Delivery Servers.................................................................................................................11
3.2 Communication Servers...................................................................................................................12
3.3 Virtual Private Servers.....................................................................................................................12
3.4 Proxy Servers...................................................................................................................................12
3.5 Security and Safe-guarding..............................................................................................................13
4. Network Topologies & Bandwidth Requirements.................................................................................14
4.1 The Star Topology............................................................................................................................15
4.2 The Bus Topology.............................................................................................................................15
4.3 The Ring Topology...........................................................................................................................16
5. Workstation Software & Hardware.......................................................................................................17
5.1 Management Software....................................................................................................................17
5.2 Management Hardware...................................................................................................................18
References.................................................................................................................................................20
Ending........................................................................................................................................................21

1
Infrastructure Report Info Tech | Sr. Network Engineer

Introduction
This report is dedicated to understanding core principles in network
infrastructure and design as a professional opinion, breakdown, and
actionable strategies. This report will also be in part an investigation into
how to build an effective E-Sports center with all the following qualities:
 Availability
 Stability
 Maintainability
We will begin with theoretical concepts and build a foundational
understanding of things relevant to the system, and then create active
decisions based on these concepts. Internet cafes although very much
unpopular today used to serve a great purpose before personal computers
were affordable. The internet café business at present-day has adapted to
this condition and has evolved into an E-Sports-oriented service than general
access to the internet. Under this domain, E-Sport centers nowadays
capitalize on delivering a highly comfortable multiplayer gaming experience.
Therefore, it can be noted that maximizing availability, stability, and
maintainability, is the burden of any E-Sports center to achieve:
- Medium Internet Bandwidth
- Extremely low latency (high upload speed)
- LAN and WAN connectivity
- Highly performant gaming stations

1. Standards and Protocols

1.1 The OSI and TCP/IP Conceptual Models
In terms of design, generally, the network
infrastructure should be implemented with the
consideration of the widely utilized TCP/IP
conceptual model. This model is specifically
adopted instead of the OSI model as it performs more reliably, as well as the
fact that it is much older than the OSI model. Within the TCP/IP model, there
are 4 specific layers of organization, contrasting with the OSI model which
contains 7 layers.
TCP/IP:
1. Application layer
2. Transport layer
3. Internet layer

2
Infrastructure Report Info Tech | Sr. Network Engineer

4. Network Access layer

OSI:
1. Application layer
2. Presentation layer
3. Session layer
4. Transport layer
5. Network layer
6. Data link layer
7. Physical layer
The most important distinction between these two models is the division of
labor, e.g., where the TCP/IP model uses the application layer as a single
layer to perform a large set of operations like encryption, dialog control, and
interfacing.
The OSI model divides these operations into the application, presentation,
and session layers. This is a hallmark of the OSI model in its conciseness
compared to its ancestor model. It is also a relatively modern standard for
computer networks and since the model is more detailed compared to the
TCP/IP model; it can prove difficult for understanding, however, this
specificity separates services distinctly and increases modification flexibility
(Jai 2020). This model supports both connection-oriented (e.g. TCP) and
connectionless (e.g. UDP) services.
Meanwhile, the TCP/IP model conclusively does not over-compartmentalize
functionality and thus is way easier to understand; for the same reason, it is
way more popular in academia and practically used by almost all networked
devices on the planet. A drawback of this model is that it was released a very
long time ago and generalizes functionality onto the same layers, failing to
distinctively separate services, interfaces, and protocols (not distinguishing
between the data link and physical layer).
The first layer of the TCP/IP model, the Data Link layer, is a physical
interfacing layer focusing on hardware specifications. There is a wide variety
of protocols pertaining to this layer, the most popular protocol being
Ethernet. Here the extent of our decision has an impact on the bandwidth
and transmission medium constraints. For instance, the generic Ethernet
protocol uses an RJ-45 cable as a transmission medium with a maximum
bandwidth of 10 Mbps, whereas Gigabit Ethernet supports up to 1000 Mbps.
There are also wireless protocols such as the IEEE 802.11 WLAN protocol
which uses wireless technology (radio frequencies) and its bandwidth based
on the specific standard, i.e., 802.11a supports up to 54Mbps whereas
802.11b only supports as far as 11Mbps.

3
Infrastructure Report Info Tech | Sr. Network Engineer

It is extremely important here that we’re using protocols that suffice for the
required high bandwidth requirement in our gaming stations. To provide the
best experience, the internet café should utilize an Ethernet protocol as its
physical layer construction, more specifically, the Gigabit Ethernet which
supports up to 1000 Mbps (via an RJ-45 connection). Realistically speaking,
any higher bandwidth protocols will be heavily costly without noticeable
improvements in gaming. According to most gaming studios, 3 Mbps is
generally considered competent to enjoy a wide array of multiplayer games.
This benchmark is almost laughable; however, technology nowadays allows
for better and heftier bandwidth connections with much fewer costs than
conceivable before, hence, it has never seemed more fit to go with Gigabit
Ethernet.

The transport layer, perhaps the most integral part of our infrastructure, has
the protocols UDP and TCP. Although the internet protocol supplies us with
source and destination addresses IP addresses (often IPv4), the transport
layer provides the data packet with source and destination port numbers
used by OS to direct data into the proper applications as well as a checksum
digit to investigate data corruption.
The User Datagram Protocol (UDP) as the name suggests transmits data
in a self-contained datagram. The UDP protocol does not ensure data
integrity or arrival. It also lacks an acknowledgment system like TCP.
However, the absence of these features is not an inherent flaw but a design
philosophy. UDP prioritizes fluency rather than integrity and this best-effort
philosophy of UDP ensures minimal overhead and speed optimizations for
applications that may benefit. UDP is also a connectionless transport protocol
in that it does not require a virtual circuit with an acknowledgment cycle for
data delivery.

Transmission Control Protocol (TCP) on the other hand is a connection-

oriented transmission system that prioritizes the integrity of the payload and
its throughput. TCP achieves this with considerable overhead by using a few
notable services; data is sequenced, organized, and broken down into parts
and are routed individually to the receiver, and a point-to-point
acknowledgment system or a three-way handshake takes place between the
sender and the recipient to ensure data delivery and integrity and fault-
tolerant retransmission when data reception is not acknowledged. A classical
TCP three-way handshake occurs when a client sends the host device
(often a server) a sequence of numbers (SYN). The server acknowledges the
sequence of numbers by incrementing it and returning the new sequence of

4
Infrastructure Report Info Tech | Sr. Network Engineer

numbers with its own new sequence of numbers (SYN/ACK). The client is
then responsible for sending back a number sequence (ACK) that is an
increment of the host’s number sequence.
Such features resolve common transmission faults like duplicates,
corruption, and misarrangement. It almost seems like using TCP is
inarguable since it comes with a lot of out-of-the-box solutions. However,
there are cases where UDP is favored over TCP, especially in fast-paced
multiplayer games and live video streaming, it is most important for data to
arrive continuously without setbacks rather than data with wholly maintained
integrity. Generally, fast-paced multiplayer games like FPS shooters and
arena games utilize the UDP protocol to sync player activity with the game
state. Some games also utilize the TCP protocol, therefore, each gaming
station in the café will use both protocols interchangeably depending on the
application.
The application layer, out of all, is the layer with which user interfaces. It is
also where core protocol decisions have to be made and weighed in. The
application layer contains many protocols such as HTTP, DHCP, SMTP, and
DNS. Many of the popular protocols here (as
well as all aforementioned protocols) work
under the TCP protocol. This means that our
choices in the protocol to use in the
application layer will influence the decision in
our transport layer protocols.
1.2 Types of Networks
A network type is determined concerning the
area of land occupied by the network. A
network contains devices ranging from a
single device to an indeterminate amount
ranging over millions. It is also improbable in
larger networks that all devices that require
connection may be in the same geographical area. Henceforth, we must
choose the type of network depending on the properties of our network.
Network types by size distinction:
1. Local Area Network (LAN)
2. Wide Area Network (WAN)
3. Metropolitan Area Network (MAN)

A Local area network (LAN) is a type of network where connected devices

share a close geographical area and are more often than not set up in a

5
Infrastructure Report Info Tech | Sr. Network Engineer

single IP subnet. Since LANs are cheap and extremely easy to set up or
maintain it’s particularly useful in small offices, cubicles, laboratories, and
home offices where there is a small number of devices to connect and within
a distance range of 1 km. Connections in a LAN network are extremely fast,
sometimes it can read up to 1 Gbps. This is because its latency is not taken
up in traveling long distances, routing, and switching as apparently
problematic on a WA. Factors that restrict latency in a LAN network are the
physical layer protocol and the speed of light. This makes LANs extremely
delightful. However, there are also a few negative aspects, for one, the
locality of the network enforces the network to operate in a limited space,
rendering it unfeasible for any decently big organization to use.
A Wide-area network much like the MAN is a geographically distributed
network with multiple LANs connected to achieve internetwork
communications. As such, one obvious advantage of a WAN is its capacity to
network over large areas; townships, cities, provinces, countries, and
continents. Since WANs often contain different networks, routing has to be
performed, along with the added distance it has to cover depending on the
WAN itself, a lot of latency is accumulated, and as such connections are
significantly slow compared to LAN connections. It is also very hard and
costly to set up or maintain as you can imagine, since WANs cover large land
masses, the point of failure is all too many. One of the greatest advantages
as the name would suggest is that a WAN connection is not limited by
distance, end devices a thousand miles apart will still be able to
communicate.
A Metropolitan area network is exactly like a WAN except for a few
accounts; it’s comparatively smaller in size (still bigger than a LAN) and
networks are connected in dedicated transmission lines.
Any E-Sports centers intending to provide a competent service must provide
LAN and WAN connection technologies to each gaming station. In the case of
LANs, this is for local tournaments as well as simply playing local multiplayer
games within the center whereas WANs are for playing competitive global
multiplayer games. Although this
approach is particularly costly, it is
standard across all many E-Sports
centers.
1.3 Network Architectures &
Technologies
A network architecture determines
the way a network is constructed on
a logical level and how the

6
Infrastructure Report Info Tech | Sr. Network Engineer

interactions between connected devices, permissions, entitlements, and

security are managed.
A few popular network architectures:
1. Client-Server
2. Peer to Peer
3. Virtualization
A Client/Server network is by far the most popular centralized network
architecture used today. This architecture resorts to a model in having a
control unit (server) where users (clients) connect and rely on the server for
information and functionality. The central server takes the burden of
performing major operations about the service it’s providing, as well as other
peripheral services like user data management, server data storage,
security, etc... The server is also in complete control of all data—even
localized—and data that is shared between private accounts, i.e., private
messages.
The client/server model therefore only depends on the reliability of the
central server than anything else. This puts the hardware and software
requirements for servers to be particularly higher than general workstations.
Network connectivity is also dependent on how well set up the server is, in
some cases, content delivery networks (expanded later) servers are used to
minimize latency in this respect. In any case, having a centralized server
allows us to localize faults, and maintain or upgrade easily; although it is
very costly to do so as the server hardware is more powerful and costly than
consumer-grade hardware.
An alternative to the client/server model is a Peer-to-Peer connection
architecture. Although not as widely utilized, the advent of Web3 promises
an entirely decentralized P2P connected world wide web so it certainly is a
technology irrevocably important and useful.
Peer-to-Peer network architecture is in design, topologically similar to a full
mesh topology. It is a network in which each node is connected with a
dedicated medium. Unlike the client/server model connected devices rely on
each other for all services and there exists no centralized control, rather a
degree of control (permissions) in terms of sharing, accessing, and
forwarding resources are distributed across different nodes which have been
assigned collectively by the network. Since P2P networks do not have a
centralized unit for management, data storage on part of the network is
done by computers having complete back-ups of all data passed around on
the network. In other words, each computer in a P2P network must at all
times have an updated local backup of the data stored on the network. This

7
Infrastructure Report Info Tech | Sr. Network Engineer

is extremely energy and hardware inefficient, however, this way of going

about this reduces the costs that often come with a dedicated server.
Virtualization is a form of technology that allows the emulation of hardware
functionality using software capabilities. For instance, a VPS as we will
discuss primarily uses this technology to hold many containers of completely
private servers, on only a single dedicated server. A few key components of
virtualization include; partition, isolation, and encapsulation (Vmware 2022).
Partition works alongside isolation to provide the functionality of running
multiple operating system containers that function in an isolated manner.
Isolation in virtualized services, particularly where public individuals can
access specific parts of the isolated containers, is particularly helpful in
preventing the disappointment of permissions. Encapsulation is used as a
process by which the entire state of the machine is saved as a file and
reused later for the continuation of its bootup.
1.4 Importance of Respecting Standards and Protocol
Initially, we skimmed over the idea of adhering to standards and protocols as
a means to an end, however, the reason is more complex. Standards and
protocols on both the hardware and software level only work in favor of the
system implementing it. Not only does adherence provides the
interoperability of intercommunication across different networks, but it also
does with an optimal implementation devised over time by collective
organizations.
Realistically, it is possible to implement a TCP-like protocol as part of the OS
or a browser, but not only would the chances of scoring an equal
performance to the standardized implementation be unsurprisingly low, it
would create connection issues and, in some cases, lead to blockades by
network firewalls.
The IP protocol is an example of a standard that provides a convention for
network addresses with four 8-bit fields (IPv4) and a much bigger variant
IPv6, both of which allow a straightforward identification of different
networks and devices in local and global networks.

2. Devices and Operations

2.1 Wired Network Systems
Within a wire-based network, a few important devices are used namely; the
switch, hub, modem, router, and firewalls. The distribution here of switches,
routers, and all other devices is adjusted based on the number of expected
devices that a network will maintain and the land area in which it is
contained.

8
Infrastructure Report Info Tech | Sr. Network Engineer

A router acts as a management (routing) device in the network to direct

where the data is sent within and across networks. When data is transmitted
by connected devices, a destination address, usually an IPv4 is attached to
the IP header of the data packet. The router examines the destination
address and redirects the data packet to reach the intended destination
optimally using metrics like the administrative distance and selecting
appropriate routes.
Routers are completely necessary to gain access to the internet as well as
for a large organization with a high number of subnets and networks and
transmission across these networks needs to be routed properly and
efficiently. There is a set of standards for how routing occurs. For example,
Static Routing is a common procedure for routing where routing
configurations are burdened on network administrators to maintain. Network
administrators then need to manually update the routing table with
appropriate routes. Presumably, this is highly impractical in medium to large
networks as it’s impossible to manually keep track and maintain optimal
routing configurations across different networks. This is perhaps even
worsened when we consider the importance of topological details in the
context of routing, and as such an administrator has to be aware of all these
details to modify the routing configuration.
A good alternative to Static Routing is Dynamic routing where protocols like
Routing Information Protocol (RIP) and Open Shortest Path First
(OSPF) are used to make adjustments to the routing table based on the state
and connections of devices in a network. In dynamically routed networks
administrators do not have a say as to which route is chosen and therefore
the security is lessened. Due to its automatic nature, dynamic routing
outperforms Static Routing in all possible ways in a large network where
topological updates are needed to render properly.
A router usually comes pre-built with a few Ethernet outlets depending on
the model; however, this is often not enough even for a medium-sized office.
A network bridge is used to address this issue, more specifically a switch.
A switch is a device often used to provide intercommunication across many
devices, whether that be other switches, personal computers, routers, and
even servers from a single network. Switches work on different layers and
sometimes on many, for example, a layer 2 (OSI) switch receives a data
transmission, it will decode and analyze the destination media access control
(MAC) address from the header and a forwarding table and forwards the
traffic to a device if connected, or filter it otherwise, a key part here is that
the switch will manage the traffic to avoid forwarding the data transmission
to unrelated devices like on a generic Bus topology network. Switches are

9
Infrastructure Report Info Tech | Sr. Network Engineer

also used to resolve collision problems similarly to network bridges. For

instance, if a set of computers are connected in a bus topology, the chances
of each device needing to occupy the backbone cable to send or receive data
at the same time are very high. This network of computers is called a
collision domain. When we introduce a switch between the network by
installing the switch between an equal number of devices, data transferred
from one end of the switch will not cross the junction unless the data packet
was specifically sent to a MAC address on the other side, in this way, data
can be interchanged simultaneously if on different sides of the switch,
reducing the collision changes by dividing one into two collision domains.
One advantage of a wire-based system is that data flows directly through a
dedicated transmission medium like a copper wire, therefore, interference
and data connectivity issues are minimized compared to wireless systems.
However, if a network system is subjected to constant reconfiguration, which
most systems are, wireless systems should be favored.
A load balancer is a device to manages network traffic across servers. Such
devices are used to increase the capacity and reliability of applications. Load
balancers do this operation by distributing network requests across different
servers, removing the immense burden of a single-server setup.
2.2 Wireless Network Systems
In wireless systems, connectivity is dictated by the radius of the Access
Points installed. Although the connection through a Wi-Fi signal may be
wireless, the access point is in turn connected to a router via Ethernet that
connects the Wi-Fi network to a wired system. Multiple Wireless Access
Point (WAP) devices can connect to a single router, therefore, many WAPs
can be subjected to centralized control, this design contributes flexibility to
network systems. When office areas are expanded a new WAP can easily be
installed and included in a single network. A popular alternative for a WAP
device is a Wi-Fi router.
A Wi-Fi router simply combines the functions of a typical router and a WAP
device. Additionally, it may also provide firewall capabilities.

3. Network Servers
There are different types of services a host device can offer, namely;
storage, communications, file transfer, and virtual private services. Host
devices that provide storage services can be database servers, file servers,
and so on based on the methodology and form of data stored.

10
Infrastructure Report Info Tech | Sr. Network Engineer

In any organization, there is always a need for a collectively maintained,

accessed, and audited form of a storage system. Pre-20 th century enterprises
used huge disks, buses, and punch cards to resolve this problem. Storage
servers provide a solution to this problem with a modern approach. Digital
files can be stored on these servers via any permitted device connected.
These files are saved inside the storage server usually in a hash-table, SQL,
or classically in a heap of memory with a file index in some cases. Storage
server architectures can be distilled down into a few different types, content
delivery networks (CDN), and data lakes.
We will discuss the following servers:
1. Content Delivery Servers (CDN)
2. Communication Servers
3. Virtual Private Servers (aka Cloud Servers)
4. Proxy Servers

3.1 Content Delivery Servers

A CDN server (Cloudflare 2022) is a form of a distributed network where
servers are installed in various geological locations to provide memory
access from a central database. Data is then cached on the proxy servers so
that any request from a user will have a response with reduced latency.
There is a huge variety of servers that ascribes to a data lake model such as
file servers with the File Transfer Protocol (FTP), SQL servers, and generally
all forms of structured and unstructured storage requirements.
A file server virtually maps networked files as drives/partitions in the form of
structured data which users are then able to modify through the connection
as if natively operating on a local drive. SQL servers, on the other hand, do
not provide a virtual file system interface like an FTP server, it provides
storage in the form of relational databases where invoices, customer
identifications, and all sorts of useful data can be stored with in-depth
metadata. CSV, JSON, TOML, and various other highly organized file types
are also often stored through this medium. Data is usually fetched from data
lakes through an API (Application Programming Interface) endpoint with a
GET/POST request.

3.2 Communication Servers

Communication services can be provided through email, web, etc.. servers.
There is a variety of email protocols namely; IMAP, SMTP, and POP. The SMTP
protocol is utilized in the exchange of email information between different

11
Infrastructure Report Info Tech | Sr. Network Engineer

mailing servers. Unlike SMTP, POP and the IMAP protocol are used as the
sending end of the email to different mailing inboxes.

3.3 Virtual Private Servers

Virtual Private Servers (VPS) or a similar more powerful variant called Cloud
Computers provide a cloud server experience; shared across a dedicated
server and compartmentalized with the virtualization technology (Ellice
2021). Although a VPS is not an actual whole physical server; but a shared
virtualized component of a dedicated server, users may still install new
operating systems and software on the virtualized layer. All software
installed onto the server is completely separated from all the other files from
the dedicated server and thus provides a private experience. Virtual private
servers also provide login access to a server anywhere users can connect to
the internet and run the SSH or Telnet protocol to tap into the server.
Virtual private servers employ system images such as Windows Server 2019,
Debian Server, Ubuntu Server, and very rarely macOS to provide a user
interface. Oftentimes, a VPS does not have a GUI interface, it runs
completely on a command-line interface.

3.4 Proxy Servers

A Proxy server (Lucas P. 2022) is a router or a specific device that acts as an
intermediary relay between a client and a server. Internet traffic exchanged
between these opposing devices can be tracked, managed, and blocked by
the proxy server. Being able to audit the network traffic, a proxy server can
prevent clients from accessing sites, and attackers from entering the private
network and maintain surveillance. It is also able to cache and serve
frequently accessed webpage without needing to request the remote server
for content repetitively. There are three distinctions in proxy servers:
1. Forward Proxy
2. Reverse Proxy
A forward proxy operates on behalf of the client device by examining the
requests transmitted by the clients and relaying them onto the appropriate
servers or blocking the connection.
A reverse proxy operates on the server rather than the client and forwards
the client requests to the web servers. The server achieves this by
intercepting incoming requests into the server and then relaying them to the
origin server.

12
Infrastructure Report Info Tech | Sr. Network Engineer

We will utilize the forward proxy server in the E-sports center to restrict
clients from accessing websites, primarily inappropriate websites or
malware-related web content. This will heavily increase the net security of
the center overall and excess services can also be provided like caching sites
like Fortnite, Epic Games, etc...

3.5 Security and Safe-guarding

Network protocols by default implementation are not designed for security,
therefore, infrastructures must implement their anti-malware systems on top
of general services. Being resilient to attacks is completely vital to any
infrastructure that needs to remain productive at all times and thus maintain
a reasonable uptime and performance.
Here are a few types of network security services;
1. Firewall
2. Segmentation & Access Control
3. Virtual Private Networks (VPN)
4. Intrusion Prevention Systems (IPS)
Firewalls manage and examine incoming and outgoing as a localized device
operation or on the entire network; part of the management includes
blocking malware and application-layer attacks.
Segmentation is a process by which we define network boundaries
(segments) where resources and assets within the boundary have a common
function, risk, or role within an organization, i.e., we can create an auditor
segment that allows the overall vision of all features and data resources
without the edit control. Careful construction of segments can heighten the
security of the network significantly. Operators of a certain role will have
defined access control permissions sanctioned by the system, and unallowed
access and perimeters are denied (Checkpoint 2022).
VPN or a virtual private network (different from VPS) provides a way to
access public or private proxy servers; as well as providing heightened
security in maintaining factors like the integrity of data and the transmission
of data. Various services like multi-factor authentication, endpoint
compliance, and encryption are a standard part of VPNs (Checkpoint 2022).
Intrusion Prevention Systems (IPS) partakes the role of preventing,
detecting, or minimizing network security attacks like brute force attacks and
(distributed) denial of service attacks (DDoS). DDoS attacks operate by
controlling a great number of devices to simultaneously overload the server
with service requests. An IPS can also be used to prevent security patch

13
Infrastructure Report Info Tech | Sr. Network Engineer

windows; in cases where attackers can take advantage of an exploit to gain

control of the networked system (Checkpoint 2022).

4. Network Topologies & Bandwidth

Requirements
Bandwidth is the measurement of an overall volume of data that can cross
and flow through a network channel at any given time, i.e., a high bandwidth
network can transfer much more data than a low bandwidth one at the same
time in parallel. There are certain qualities of networked devices that affect
their bandwidth, namely, physical layer protocol, cabling, modems, and
network card.
A network topology is a schematic layout for the arrangement of network
infrastructure in the physical domain as well as how each connected nodes
interact with the other in logical domains. A “physical” topology here
specifically means the physical layout of the network, whereas a “logical”
topology describes the connection and the management of data over the
network. These topologies can be conjoined to achieve maximum quality.
There is a variety of network topologies standardized for specific operations
that we will examine. Although some of the older network topologies are
obsolete, schemas like the Star, Bus, and Ring topologies are used
abundantly.

4.1 The Star Topology

This topology (Andrew lays out a

network in a star configuration,
i.e., each node within the
topology is directly in connection
to a central hub or a switch. The
central hub is in charge of
controlling the confluence of data
transmitted from connected
nodes.

14
Infrastructure Report Info Tech | Sr. Network Engineer

Deficits: An apparent side-effect of this configuration is its heavy

dependency on the central device. If the central device fails; a power outage
or of that sort, the entire network will entirely shut down. Such configuration
can be difficult to practically implement; it is also entirely prone to
bottlenecks and disappointments at the central node. It
Benefits: Appending extra nodes to a start topology is fairly straightforward
via connecting the device directly to the hub, or via a hub/proxy if there is an
insufficient number of outlets. It is also very easy to troubleshoot and isolate
network issues.

4.2 The Bus Topology

Nodes configured in a bus topology are connected via a coaxial backbone

cable that runs through contiguously. Under this manner of organization,
every message sent from one connected node is received by all other
connected nodes.
Deficits: The bus topology also suffers from the same impediment as the
star topology in that it heavily relies on the availability of specific hardware;
in this case, the integrity and capability of the backbone cable (spine).
Bandwidth and throughput are defined by the type of cabling and physical
layer protocol used presumably—thus adding on new nodes to the bus
topology may subject the entire network to high latency. Since all data
transmitted from connected nodes passes through the backbone cable its
throughput is also considerably lower and harder to troubleshoot.
Benefits: Extremely low costs due to the less cabling required; and easy to
set up.

15
Infrastructure Report Info Tech | Sr. Network Engineer

4.3 The Ring Topology

The ring topology as its name suggests

is constructed in the shape of a ring.
This means that lateral neighboring
nodes will be connected to the node in
between, making a sort of chain until
the final node connects to the first node.
The lateral connection separates the
collision domains into sections between
parallel nodes, in doing so it reduces the
chances of collisions.

Benefits: This configuration can work entirely in the absence of a central

server eyeing the network; generally costly and difficult to set up and
maintain.
Deficits: However, doing so also creates a huge problem; the same
impediment from the bus and ring topologies. The ring topology relies on
each connected device to operate in good faith. If a connected node is
malicious or inoperable, the entire network will discontinue.

5. Workstation Software & Hardware

As we design the E-sports center, it is very important to understand the
interdependence of workstation software and hardware. Without the proper
maintenance and selection of hardware, the software may not be optimally
or at all function.
Software in this sense includes the operating systems of the gaming stations,
network drivers, peripheral scripts, and functionalities. By definition software
are abstractions of hardware, maintaining a user-friendly interface that can
be controlled to command hardware operations. Clients require software to
connect to the services on the internet, it is perhaps even more complex
with the necessary control it must be imposed under whilst doing so.
Therefore, it is not particularly surprising that software is dependent on
hardware capabilities, later we will discuss SENET, a software abstraction
solution for the maintenance of an E-sports center.

16
Infrastructure Report Info Tech | Sr. Network Engineer

5.1 Management Software

SENET is a management software for enterprises that require one-stop,
manageable, easy-to-scale, and insightful solutions.
It offers the following features:
1. Financial control
2. Statistics
3. Cloud Service
4. Access Level Division
5. PC Map
6. Console Compatibility
7. Shop Shell modules
The SENET system (Senet 2022) is compatible with both PCs and modern
game consoles, and virtual reality devices are supported. The club's
administration can synchronize any number of consoles with the system and
manage them in the same way that computers are managed using a special
controller. Each console can be labeled with a QR code, allowing customers
to pay for and extend game time on their own. SENET also allows the
creation of an exact map of computers and consoles of the center, displaying
them on the screen the way they are placed. The system interface provides
the ability to number the machines and divide them into separate zones,
setting different rates. Thus, the administrator has full access to any of the
PCs, tracking the popularity of game zones, specific games or programs, and
tracking the time left for the user.
Since multiplayer games can be paired in two different ways, through a local
area network or the internet. Generally, fast-paced multiplayer games like
FPS shooters and arena games utilize the UDP protocol to sync player
activity with the game state (Ahren Stevens 2022). Some games also use the
TCP protocol, therefore, each gaming station in the café will use both
protocols interchangeably depending on the application.

5.2 Management Hardware

SENET has created its hardware solution for console management. A small
device connected to the console allows every visitor to pay the time, control
the process and prolong the usage in a few easy steps. In addition, every
console can be marked with a special QR code for every visitor to log into the
system with any mobile device (Senet 2022).
All gaming stations will be connected to the SENET adapter for network
control or if it’s a customizable gaming computer, it will have the Windows
operating system, with all standard support that comes with Windows; and

17
Infrastructure Report Info Tech | Sr. Network Engineer

will be equipped with a network adapter that supports RJ-45 Ethernet Port,
e.g., TP-Link Gigabit Ethernet PCI Express Card TG-3468 (Tp-Link 2022).

There are two physical topologies most fit for an internet café: Bus and Star
topology. Whereas in the star topology, the café administrator can localize
control with a central commanding computer, allowing the administrator to
control and regulate content being served on each gaming station.
Implementing the Bus topology is cheaper than Star topology but the
tradeoffs are immense. Dedicated gaming stations will require and consume
high-intensity data exchange with the servers and any increased latency
here would prove detrimental to the business, not to mention, when the
backbone cable is damaged, the entire café will halt to an end
catastrophically.
Therefore, regardless of the costs, all things considered, the internet café
should go with the Star topology where each gaming station is connected to
a host device in parallel. Although the network is reliant on the host device
to be functional, it is much easier to maintain devices as opposed to cables.
Much of the needed control will also be within the router configurations. A
good router is necessary for any internet café, e.g., the TP-Link AX54000
WIFI 6 Router Gigabit Wireless router is a viable choice in this circumstance,
costing $188 (Tp-Link 2022).
The router also comes packed with reboot schedules, dynamic DNS, and
DHCP services. Since the router also comes with a wireless access point, the
internet café can provide internet access on the customer’s peripheral
devices. If needed, the internet café can also deploy TP-Link RE450 Range
extenders for Wi-Fi signals to enhance land coverage. In terms of IP
assignment and routing, it will be safe to use the DHCP protocol as the café
will have a preponderance number of computers with an ever-changing
count.
High-intensity gaming calls for a powerful internet service provider,
therefore, here we decided to choose the 5BB BB4 plan for 300Mbps+ with a
Wi-Fi Mesh business plan that allows for 50-100 Users at the same time,
costing around $150 a month. Any higher plans from the same array of
options provided by 5BB will cost above $500 (5BB 2022) and prove
unnecessary as well as cost-inefficient for the network with negligible
improvements.

18
Infrastructure Report Info Tech | Sr. Network Engineer

References
Senet (2022) Software Solutions, Available at: https://senet.cloud/en/product
(Accessed:21 June 2022)
Vecta (2022) Free Vector Icons, Available at
https://vecta.io/symbols/240/cisco-network-topology-icons-3015
(Accessed:21 June 2022)
Cloudflare (2022) What is a CDN?, Available at:
https://www.cloudflare.com/learning/cdn/what-is-a-cdn/ (Accessed:21 June
2022)
Lucas P. (2022) Proxies, Available at: https://blog.cloudflare.com/a-primer-
on-proxies/ (Accessed: 21 June 2022)
Vmware (2022) Virtualization, Available at:
https://www.vmware.com/asean/solutions/virtualization.html#:~:text=Virtual
ization%20relies%20on%20software%20to,of%20scale%20and%20greater
%20efficiency (Accessed: 22 June 2022)
Ellice (2021) What is a VPS?, Available at:
https://www.dreamhost.com/blog/beginners-guide-vps/ (Accessed: 22 June
2022)
Jai Janardhan (2020) Advantages and Disadvantages of the OSI model,
Available at: https://www.tutorialspoint.com/Advantages-and-Disadvantages-
of-the-OSI-Model (Accessed: 22 June 2022)
19
Infrastructure Report Info Tech | Sr. Network Engineer

5BB (2022) Business internet plans, Available at:

https://www.5bb.com.mm/Business/Plan (Accessed: 22 June 2022)
Tp-Link (2022) Tp-Link products, Available at:
https://www.amazon.com/stores/TP-Link/TP-Link/page/ (Accessed: 22 June
2022)
Ahren Stevens (2022) Multiplayer game programming, Available at:
https://www.packt.com/getting-started-multiplayer-game-programming/
#:~:text=The%20two%20networking%20protocols%20that,clients%20in
%20a%20network%20system (Accessed: 22 June 2022)
Checkpoint (2022) Network Security, Available at:
https://www.checkpoint.com/cyber-hub/network-security/what-is-network-
security/ (Accessed: 22 June 2022)

20